1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a luminaire having an annular illumination lamp with a subjacent annular louver which must be removed in order to replace the lamp and, more particularly, is concerned with such a luminaire having an inner annular housing separating an interior cavity of an outer annular housing of the luminaire into a central portion and an outer annular portion and an annular support element detachably mounted to the inner annular housing and removably supporting the annular louver in the outer annular portion outside of the inner annular housing and below the lamp.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In a luminaire known from German patent document no. DE 44 14 742 A1, there is disposed below an annular fluorescent lamp of the luminaire an annular reflector with lamella-form dimming elements commonly referred to as a louver. The fastening elements of such reflector and louver are accessible via an interior space delimited by the lamp. In addition, the interior space is utilized for accommodating a fluorescent lamp ballast.
This German patent document also proposes to use this interior space for accessories by disposing therein technical illumination installations or the other devices such as radiators, sprinklers, loudspeaker or ventilation devices. In a luminaire of the above type, such diverse accessory devices can only be mounted from a roof of the luminarie. However, the disposition of such accessory devices in the interior space and their mounting to the luminaire roof makes access to and removal of the reflector and louver difficult, for example, in the event of failure of the fluorescent lamp.
Consequently, a need exists for an innovation which will accommodate in a luminaire of the above type the desired luminaire accessories in a multifunctional manner in the interior space of the luminaire separately from the reflector and louver or their fastening elements.
The present invention provides a luminaire that overcomes the aforementioned problems and is designed to satisfy the aforementioned need. The luminaire of the present invention includes an outer annular housing defining an interior cavity and an inner annular housing separating the interior cavity of the outer annular housing into a central portion to accommodate illumination installation parts and accessories and an outer annular portion to accommodate an annular illumination lamp and an annular louver. The annular louver disposed below the illumination lamp must be removed in order to replace the lamp. The luminaire also includes an annular support element detachably mounted to the inner annular housing to removably support the annular louver. By rotation relative to the inner annular housing, the annular support element is easily detached therefrom to remove the annular louver without disturbing the parts and accessories in the central portion of the interior cavity. The inner annular housing can also be installed and removed by rotation relative to a roof of the luminaire. The luminaire of the present invention can thereby be equipped in a multifunctional manner.
These and other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon a reading of the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the drawings wherein there is shown and described an illustrative embodiment of the invention.